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Oct. 31, 2006
Grand opening set for Arthur Miller TheatrePlay, international symposium part of U-M’s year-long exploration of the arts ANN ARBOR, Mich.—In the spirit of the late Arthur Miller, who believed the arts could have a transformative impact on American society, the University of Michigan announces the much-anticipated opening of a theatre named for America’s greatest playwright whose works reflect the themes, disillusionments and imperative moral issues of the second-half of the twentieth century. The Arthur Miller Theatre on the Ann Arbor campus will open March 29; it is the only venue in the world named for the quintessential American playwright. The theatre is located within the Walgreen Drama Center on the University’s North Campus, home to the School of Music, Theatre & Dance, the School of Art and Design, and the School of Architecture. “With the theatre comes an obligation to offer drama students and audiences the type of compelling and honest portrayals found in Arthur Miller’s seminal works,” said U-M President Mary Sue Coleman. “Opening the doors of the theatre is both a symbol and an invitation for students, the University community, and the public to join a discourse about values, morality, and the promise of how the arts can broaden our horizons.” The Arthur Miller Theatre opening and a symposium featuring internationally acclaimed Miller scholars are signature events in the newly announced U-Michigan initiative, Arts on Earth, an exploration of the profound dynamic relationship between humans and the arts worldwide. Arts on Earth will kick off with an opening event in early winter. In addition to concerts, plays, and exhibits of works from all over the world, Arts on Earth will convene interactive symposia with artists, students, scholars and the public. Learn-ins will explore topics such as the intrinsic effects of humans’ involvement with the arts, economics and the arts, and the function of the arts during wartime. In late December, a Web site will list a calendar of events and feature stories on issues and people participating in this unprecedented exploration of the role of the arts in our lives. A playwright’s legacy For the historic opening of the Arthur Miller Theatre, the Department of Theatre & Drama will present Miller’s “Playing for Time,” which is based on a harrowing biographical account of a part-Jewish French cabaret singer forced by the infamous Dr. Josef Mengele and the Nazis to play in the women’s orchestra at Auschwitz death camp. The play was originally adapted for television in 1980, and won a Peabody and four Emmys, including Outstanding Drama Special and Outstanding Writing in a Limited Series or Special; it also was nominated for a Golden Globe. The symposium, “Global Miller,” will examine Arthur Miller’s influence, impact and legacy on international theatre. Throughout his life, Miller dedicated himself to find ways to focus public awareness on unjust and often controversial issues, from his defiant decision “not to name names” before the House on Un-American Activities Committee in 1956 to his vision as president of PEN in the mid 1960s, when he led the worldwide literary membership to take positions on what he called “the conscience of the world writing community.” “The Global Miller Symposium,” March 29 – April 1, is organized by U-M Department of English professor Enoch Brater, who was recently named the Kenneth T. Rowe Collegiate Professor in Dramatic Literature, Department of English Language and Literature. Brater is well-known internationally for his seminal studies of Samuel Beckett and other modern dramatists. He has edited two books on Arthur Miller, “Arthur Miller's America: Theater and Culture in a Time of Change” (University of Michigan Press) and “The Stages of Arthur Miller” (Thames and Hudson, London). His newest book, “Global Miller,” will launch in March 2007 by the University of Michigan Press to coincide with the theatre’s opening. The three-day conference brings together scholars, directors, actors and other theatre practitioners from around the world. Participants include Christopher Bigsby, a renowned expert on Miller. Bigsby is professor of American literature and head of the School of American Studies at the University of East Anglia in Norwich, United Kingdom. His work includes “Modern American Drama 1945-2000,” “The Cambridge Companion to Arthur Miller, Contemporary American Dramatists” and the definitive work on Miller, “Arthur Miller: A Critical Study,” (2005). He is also joint editor of “The Cambridge History of the American Theatre.” It began with a note The genesis of the Arthur Miller Theatre goes back to former U-M President Lee C. Bollinger, who first articulated a vision for the drama center and Arthur Miller Theatre in his 1997 inauguration. “This is a community that loves the word, that loves performance,” Bollinger said. “This is vital to what we are as a community and as an institution.” In 2000, Arthur Miller sent a simple postcard to the University giving his alma mater permission to name a theatre after him. The project was further sealed by a gift of $10 million from Charles R. Walgreen, Jr. a 1938 graduate of the U-M College of Pharmacy. The center and theatre were designed by Kuwabara Payne McKenna and Blumberg Associates of Toronto. With its dramatic glass design, the Arthur Miller Theatre is a stunning presence on North Campus. The theatre seats 280 in straight proscenium configuration with the option of a 3/4 thrust configuration. The lobby features a three-story glass atrium with a central staircase that connects the theatre to the academic classrooms. Miller reviewed the theatre design before his death in February, 2005. A symbolic play The inaugural drama, “Playing for Time,” offers the type of moral and emotionally complex terrain that distinguishes Miller’s finest works. That “Playing for Time” is seldom performed likely adds a bit of its own drama to opening night preparations. “The play is rarely performed, given its scope and the large scale of its production,” said Gregory Poggi, chair of the Department of Theatre & Drama. “So it is fitting to open the Arthur Miller Theatre with a work with which audiences are not too familiar, and one that expresses, in Miller's words, ‘raising the truth-consciousness of mankind to a level of such intensity as to transform those who observe it.’ ” “Playing for Time” will be directed by U-M alumnus Robert Chapel who joined the Department of Theatre & Drama in fall 2005 to direct its critically acclaimed production of “The Laramie Project.” Chapel is a professor at the University of Virginia and former chair of the Drama Department (1990-2005). He has been the producing artistic director of the Heritage Repertory Theatre since 1995. Joining Chapel on the production is scenic designer Vince Mountain whose designs will also be seen in December in the Dept. of Theatre & Drama’s production of “You Can’t Take it With You.” Meanwhile, Jessica Hahn serves as costume designer. Hahn is a recipient of several Jefferson Awards for her work in Chicago theatre and recently designed for the U-M Department of Musical Theatre production of “The Pajama Game.” And, lighting design is by Gary Decker whose work was recently seen in the U-M Department of Theatre & Drama production of “The Cradle Will Rock.” Decker’s professional work includes designs on numerous nationally touring plays. He has also worked at the Boarshead and Purple Rose theatres in Michigan. Henry Reynolds, whose work was last seen last fall in the U-M Department of Theatre & Drama production of “The Laramie Project,” designs sound. Mountain, Hahn, and Decker are all associate professors in the U-M Department of Theatre & Drama. Reynolds is an assistant professor in department and information systems administrator for University Productions, the producing unit for the School of Music, Theatre & Dance. “Playing for Time” will be performed at 7:30 p.m. March 29 and April 5; at 8 p.m. March 30 and 31 and April 6 and 7; and at 2 p.m. April 1 and 8. Related Links:
Contact: Kerianne Tupac or Contact: Frank Provenzano |
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